


Low Days

by kingfauna



Category: Zero Escape (Video Games), Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma - Fandom
Genre: Fluff, Multi, Oops, fluff and junpei is depressed, it's just fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-30
Updated: 2019-05-30
Packaged: 2020-03-29 21:20:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19028155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kingfauna/pseuds/kingfauna
Summary: Sometimes, he wonders how he found himself in a timeline that seems so.. right. So perfect. Sure, he technically cheated his way here. Realistically, he would've died a long time ago had he not eventually SHIFTed to the timeline he was in now.. but it felt as though things still could have gone wrong somewhere down the line. But they didn't. Nothing went horribly wrong yet. Maybe it was a sign, or an omen, rather, that dark turn of events were yet to come and Junpei couldn't shake that horrendous thought out of his mind. If things had to go wrong, he hoped it wasn't any time soon.





	Low Days

**Author's Note:**

> listen.... you cant tell me Junpei isn't at least sort of depressed  
> I HOPE yall like this fic though! It's not much but I wanted to at least write a little something for these three between assignments. I promise in the future I'll write something bigger that isn't so Junpei-centric!
> 
> I hope you enjoy and thank you to the friends who helped proofread this.

                He doesn't know how he got here. He doesn't know what he could've possibly done to deserve this.

                Sometimes, he wonders how he found himself in a timeline that seems so.. right. So perfect. Sure, he technically cheated his way here. Realistically, he would've died a long time ago had he not eventually SHIFTed to the timeline he was in now.. but it felt as though things still could have gone wrong somewhere down the line. But they didn't. Nothing went horribly wrong yet. Maybe it was a sign, or an omen, rather, that dark turn of events were yet to come and Junpei couldn't shake that horrendous thought out of his mind. If things had to go wrong, he hoped it wasn't any time soon.

                 He was comfortable. He might not admit it out loud unless it was forcibly pried out of him or unless the moment called for a sporadic cheesy line, but he found himself to be so comfortably happy that he wouldn't change anything.

                 Perhaps that was a bit of a lie. He would change some things, though most of the issues he had concerned himself more than it did anyone else. There were countless nights like tonight where he wondered why Carlos and Akane chose him of all people. Yeah, he had history with Akane already but she had every reason in the world not to come back and live with him. And Carlos... Carlos hardly knew him. He hardly knew either of them. Despite this, despite explicitly telling them he had 'no time for love' he wound up in the same house as them. In the same room. In the same bed. ...With an engagement ring on his finger.

                 He'd been so lost in his thoughts that the sudden sound of sizzling as the tea he was boiling spilled out the top of the pan and into the burner pulled him back to reality.  
                "Shit!" he exclaimed, hurrying to lower the heat on the stove top and move the pan just enough to let the tea settle down.

                "Good job, Junpei, you did it again, asshole." he muttered to himself, disappointment ringing clear in his voice.  
                It was not common, per se, but it was not out of the ordinary either. His mind was cruel and relentless. At times, he would find himself in a dark spiral of thoughts. Instead of living in the moment, he would dwell on the past and future alike. Such was the toll of the Nonary and Decision games. Such was the toll of his search for Akane. Such was the toll for the horrors he had seen at the detective agency.

                He grit his teeth and moved to prepare some teacups on standby. Carlos and Akane were most likely not awake yet, but he figured they would be up shortly and would appreciate a cup of tea waiting for them. It was the least he could do for them. Depression really was a bitch. He would gladly trade it for anything else.

                He entertained the idea of opting for alcohol instead of tea. More for Carlos and Akane, right? But ultimately decided against it. They wouldn't want him to fall into that vicious cycle again.

                 With the cups poured, he took his own and started heading out of the kitchen. Hopefully they would wake up before the tea got cold. He really didn't think that one through, did he? Of course he didn't. He didn't expect himself to.

                “Junpei...” a familiar voice spoke, filled with nothing but warmth and concern. “You're not beating yourself up again, are you?”  
She knew. Of course she knew. Akane would always know him better than anyone else. It was inevitable.

                “N-No.... I don't know what you're talking about!” he exclaimed in an obvious lie. He knew she wouldn't buy it but damn was it ever worth a shot.

                “Junpei... you know you can't lie to me.” She didn't elaborate, she left her words hanging in the air but it clicked easily.

                “Right. Blah blah blah morphogenetic bullshit. Of course.” he rolled his eyes, crossing his free arm over his chest, the other still carrying his teacup.

                “Well... no,” Akane paused, furrowing her brows slightly. “Not quite. I know you, Junpei. I don't need to access the morphogenetic field to know that you're upset.”

                 Sometimes depression had to have its way. It's as though the words left his mouth beyond his control.  
                “You don't know me, Akane.” If he could take back the words, he would. He was cold at times, sure, but if there was something he was not; it's completely heartless. She meant far too much to him for him to hurt her like this, and he could tell his words certainly had gotten to her by the twinge of hurt in her expression. Akane was strong and oftentimes she could play off his cruel words, but she wasn't invincible. Some words hurt her more than others. Some days they carried more weight to them.

                She wasn't fully broken down by his words however. She was about to give him a well-deserved piece of her mind actually, when a deep voice spoke up.

                “Guys, what's going on?”  
                Carlos peered into the kitchen, leaning against the frame.

                There was silence.  
                He hesitated. “Okay,” he tried again, tentative. “Let me rephrase that. What's going wrong?”

                Akane was the first to speak up.  
                “Oh, you know. Just Junpei spouting nonsense.”

                 “So the usual.” he responded, a grin playing at his mouth.

                 “Oh shut UP, Carlos! You're not supposed to side with her!” Junpei yelled, looking visibly offended. Knowing him, he genuinely was offended. Sometimes he suspected the other man wanted nothing more than an equal share of affection, if not more, but he knew Junpei would never admit that.

                Carlos put his hands up in defeat. “Okay, okay. So tell me then, what'd I miss?”

                “Who cares, I made tea.” Junpei was quick to respond, giving a soft shrug of his shoulders. “So drink up, big boy.”  
                He tried to leave, but the taller man moved to stand in his way.  
                “Dude, what gives? Just let me go already. It's nothing.”

                 Perhaps a part of him knew deep down that they wouldn't let him go so easily. They loved him, after all. And with love came worry. It didn't help that they were the types to always go to great lengths for their loved ones.

                

Akane moved closer, sighing. It wasn't a sigh of frustration by any means, moreso one that hinted sadness. When she slid her arms around him, face and chest pressed to his back, mindful of the cup he was holding, he didn't move. He allowed her to do so because a part of him liked this. A part of him was okay with this. You could even say he wanted this.  
                “Junpei...” she trailed off, hesitating.  
                Carlos seized the opportunity to join in as well, his arms sliding around both of them at once, hands placed gently on Akane's back. He too was mindful of the cup.  
                They stayed there for a moment. They merely held one another and eventually Junpei's free arm found itself around the man in front of him.  
                “Junpei, we love you. Don't you ever forget that.” Akane's words were soft and gentle, though there was a slight stern edge to them.  
                “Not unless you want to anger her... Pretty sure you don't want that.” Carlos chimed in with a bit of a snicker.

                They laughed, but no more words were spoken after that for a moment.

                Junpei was the first to break the silence.  
                “Alright, this is cool and all, but my arm is cramping up and I'd still like to be able to use it. Also I.. made tea for everyone so please go drink it before it gets cold and it feels like all my efforts were for nothing.” he spoke the second half more quietly than the first.

                They carefully broke apart from their embrace, and from here the morning carried on no differently than any other. Carlos and Akane stayed at the dinner table to chat idly and enjoy their tea, occasionally carrying the topic to work-related things, where Akane happily indulged in the leads she had gotten on their hunt for the fanatic. Junpei all the while found himself on the living room couch, staring emptily at the small coffee table.  
                They could tell him a million times over that they loved him but a dark part of his mind would still doubt them. He loved them and he wanted to trust them, and often he did, but it wasn't always easy to push the doubts to the far back of his mind..  
                He let out a frustrated sigh, not too loud however so the other two wouldn't have to worry, and decided today he would make an attempt to shrug off those thoughts. He couldn't let their love be in vain.

                 From the living room, he could hear Akane rambling about some far-fetched theories he'd never even heard of. He only caught a few words here and there, but the passion and knowledge she spoke with brought a smile tugging at corners of his mouth. It was easier to smile when no one was watching.

                 This was alright.  
                How he'd been so lucky, he'll never know. But it's easier to bask in the moment than it is to ask questions he may never get the answers to.  
                This was alright, and he would live every second of it.

                 At last, he lifted himself from the couch and decided to join them.  
                Today would be a good day.

                And he would have it no other way.


End file.
